Universal Pictures adds 'i-Trailer' for teen movie push

Universal Pictures launched an i-Trailer on August 4 to promote Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, debuting the marketing tool on Yahoo's movie site. The movie studio partnered with Mark Woollen and Associates to create it.

The i-Trailer has the look and feel of an 8-bit videogame and leads consumers who opt-in to comprehensive information about the film. Individuals can control the path they go on as they discover facts and information about Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. Examples of featured information are where a scene was shot, what the music cue was and how a particular scene in the movie relates to the graphic novel.

The goal is to better engage Universal Pictures' target audience for the film, 13 to 34 year olds, in a one-on-one experience, said Doug Neil, SVP of digital marketing at Universal Pictures.

“There was an existing fan base for the property that was hungry for more information about the movie and the i-Trailer allowed us to give a ‘behind the scenes' look at the film,” said Neil.

He noted that the main challenge was to make the i-Trailer as comprehensive as possible, while ensuring that Universal Pictures was accurate and engaging with the materials it is providing about the film.

“We worked closely with [director] Edgar Wright to capture commentary about the scenes in the i-Trailer to enhance the overall viewing experience,” said Neil.

To measure its success, Universal Pictures will monitor the number of views, engagements and shares, “which helps us determine if the interaction rate is what we hoped it would be,” he added.

After its debut on Yahoo, Universal also made the trailer available on the film's official site.